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The United States has unveiled visa restrictions against an unnamed Haitian government official for alleged ties to the country’s gangs.
But while the US did not identify the official, one has since stepped forward: Fritz Alphonse Jean, a member of Haiti’s transitional presidential council.
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On Tuesday, Jean spoke to The Associated Press news agency, saying he was targeted with visa restrictions and denying the US government’s allegations as false.
He also accused the US and Canada of putting pressure on the council as it reviewed candidates for next year’s national elections.
“Once we started reviewing the possibilities of changing the head of government, members of [the council] started receiving threats of visa cancellation and other sanctions from the US embassy representative and the Canadian ambassador,” Jean said.
The message, Jean explained, was that “if we do not desist, we will face sanctions and visa cancellation”. The US government has yet to comment on Jean’s allegations.
A crackdown on gangs
Jean’s remarks arrive in response to a statement from the US State Department late on Monday night, announcing the visa restrictions against the unnamed official.
“Today the Department of State is taking steps to impose visa restrictions on a Haitian government official for supporting gangs and other criminal organizations, and obstructing the government of Haiti’s fight against terrorist gangs designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations,” the statement said.
It added that the sanctions would bar the official’s entry into the US and revoke any valid visas the person may currently have.
The administration of US President Donald Trump has taken a tougher stance on gangs and other criminal networks in Latin America, including in Haiti.
Since January, it has led a campaign to designate criminal groups in the region as “foreign terrorist organisations”, as part of its broader crackdown on illicit drug trafficking and immigration into the US.
Already, the Trump administration has labelled Haitian gangs like Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif as “foreign terrorist” groups.
One prominent gang leader, Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, was indicted for conspiracy in the US in August. A reward of $5m has been offered for information leading to his arrest.
In October, the US government also imposed sanctions on a gang leader and former police officer associated with Viv Ansamn.
Gang violence is a critical concern in Haiti, where approximately 90 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, has fallen under the control of criminal groups.
The United Nations and other groups have also noted a trend this year of gang activity expanding into areas previously less affected by the violence, including the Centre and Artibonite departments in the west.
The result has been a widespread humanitarian crisis in one of the hemisphere’s poorest countries.
In October, the International Organization for Migration found that 1.4 million Haitians were displaced from their homes, a record high.
Last year, more than 5,600 people were killed in the violence, an increase of nearly 1,000 over the rate in 2023.
Just between April and June this year — a three-month span — the UN estimates that 1,617 were killed and 580 wounded.
Government upheaval
Experts have credited instability in Haiti’s government with allowing the gangs to expand their reach. In 2021, Haitian President Jovenel Moise was assassinated in his home, and no president has succeeded him since.
The national elections that were scheduled to take place in 2019 have also been repeatedly delayed, leading to a crisis of withering public confidence in the government.
The last democratically elected officials in the national government saw their terms expire in 2023. The exit of the final 10 senators left the country with no elected lawmakers.
Questions of corruption and legitimacy have long dogged the officials who remained in their posts, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, a political appointee, in 2024.
A transitional presidential council was set up in April of that year to help address the problem. It was created to act as Haiti’s governing body until a new president was elected or its mandate expired, as is scheduled for February 7, 2026.
One of its primary goals was to schedule national elections for the country. A multi-round election cycle was initially expected to start in November and continue through February 2026, but those elections have since been postponed.
Currently, the council has set a provisional timeline to begin election campaigns in March and hold votes in August and December of next year.
There have long been questions, however, about whether members of the council will indeed step down in February.
Several members of the nine-seat council have been embroiled in a corruption scandal, after investigators accused them of demanding bribes.
The council as a whole has struggled with internal disagreements and criticism that its membership — which includes politicians, academics and businessmen — only represents Haiti’s elite.
Currently, Laurent Saint-Cyr, a leader in the insurance industry, chairs the council. Jean previously served in the role from March to August.
A former prime minister and head of the Bank of the Republic of Haiti, Jean is a well-known economist in the country.
He told The Associated Press the council would continue to fight gang violence and denied any allegations of wrongdoing on his part.
“We stand firm on combating corruption, state capture by a few individuals, and operators involved in drugs trafficking, weapons and ammunition’s proliferation,” Jean said.
